1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a universal workpiece positioner and more particularly to a holder for a workpiece to be operated upon in which the workpiece may be moved and retained in a desired position.
In the manufacture of various items it is often necessary to position the item to conveniently perform an operation upon it such as welding, painting, forming, assembling, etc. The items may take various forms and sizes and may be small such as a circuit board or as large as perhaps a section of an automobile body.
Accordingly, it is desirable to have a workholder to which a large variety of items to be worked upon may be secured and in which the workholder may be freely adjusted to position time item in an ergonomically correct work position for the operation to be performed.
2. Description of the Prior Art
There exists a considerable number of universal ball and socket type of workholders for securing workpieces in a particular position. One type of such workholder contemplates a pneumatic system for holding the ball in position within its socket after the ball with the workpiece attached has been manipulated to the desired position. A particular disadvantage of this system of the prior art is that when the pneumatic pressure is released or in the event of air leakage the ball with a workpiece attached may move under the force of gravity to change its position and perhaps cause damage and injury to an operator or associated equipment. Examples of these prior art devices are shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,354,937, 2,559,925 and 3,638,973. The systems of these patents all depend on fluid pressure to maintain the universal workpiece holder in the fixed predetermined position.